United airline has been reduced their first checked baggage charge 20%. This offer will avail only for those travelers who check-in online and pay the fee at airline website before January 31, 2009. The carrier also announedd that,the cost of check-in second baggage will remain same i.e. $25.

Passengers on Air France looking for extra legroom will now have to pay to sit in emergency exit rows or in the front rows, making the carrier the first in the industry to introduce this type of supplement charge.

The seats involved are those not having other seats directly in front of them, making it possible for passengers with long legs to stretch out a bit more.

Until the introduction of this charge, in many cases passengers have been able to request these seats when checking in for a flight.

From this point, however, these seats on Air France will be sold at a premium, with passengers paying the surcharge either on the phone when making a booking, or online.

“It will be a small charge to have to pay for extra legroom,” said a spokesman for the airline, noting that the £40 charge will be applied to long-haul services first.

Passengers who are members of the airline’s Flying Blue card will still be able to reserve the seats at the standard price, after they have reached the frequent flier Gold or Platinum status, according to the spokesman.

The surcharge is now in effect on flights from France to North America, and will be expanded to cover the remainder of the airline’s long-haul network.

Industry observers anticipate that the idea will be copied by other airlines, as the industry continues to struggle financially in the challenging economic climate.

Thanks to www.telegraph.co.uk for the above quotes, for more information on this article please visit their website.

Mexicana has announced that it will launch direct service from Mexico City to London Gatwick in January of 2009.

The director of communications at Mexicana, announced that the airline believes the route will generate enough demand to justify the twice-weekly flights from Gatwick, and the increase planned to four times per week from mid-February, in spite of the current economic climate.

More UK holidaymakers visit Mexico each year, with the number of annual visitors increasing to 300,000 in 2007. Crespo has said that the continuing growth of passenger numbers has lead Mexicana to believe that the route will be a profitable one, despite the global financial crisis.

Presently, British Airways is the only carrier operating non-stop service from London to Mexico City, and flies from London Heathrow. Passenger groups are hoping that the additional competition on the route will lead to lower airfares.

The London service will be Mexicana’s first European route, to be launched as the carrier joins the OneWorld Alliance, which also has American Airlines and British Airways as members.